Designations: M94, NGC 4736
Object Type: Spiral Galaxy
Constellation: Canes Venatici
RA: 12h 50.9 min
Dec: +41 deg 7 min
Visual
Magnitude: 8.2
Size: 11.2 min X 9.1 min
Distance: 14 million light
years
Discoverer: Pierre Mechain,
1781
Visual Description: Despite its placid
appearance, M94 may have experienced a violent explosion only 10 million years
ago - a cleansing event that disgorged millions of solar masses of material out
of its disk or nucleus. Episodes of violent behavior may be typical for spiral
systems; if so, we are seeing this mundane-looking spiral in a quiescent state.
Its disk is oriented enarly face on to us, and photographs through large
instruments reveal its tightly wrapped arms, reminiscent of those in satellite
views of a tropical hurricane.
Seeing Conditions: Not Recorded
Telescope: Meade 10" LX200
Focal Length:
2500 mm
Mount: LX200
Camera: Starlight XPress MX916
Exposure:
900 sec
Other:
S.T.A.R 2000
Autoguider
Image Processing: images were stacked (average), a dark frame was subtracted and the image was sharpened
The Visual description of the M94 Galaxy was writen by Steven James O'Meara in the book "The Messier Objects" by Stephen James O'Meara. Page. 252. ISBN number 0-521-55332-6.
Copyright(c) 2007 Doug Sanqunetti. All rights reserved
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